Non Communicable Disease

NCD is a huge concern to the society. They are preventable and manageable. In some communities treatment options are often poor. There is a need to increase awareness in every community and also community involvement in addressing the growing burden of NCD. Ignorance is a key contributor to the alarming rate of NCD asides poor availability of services and financial resources. In order to help prevent, reduce or manage NCD, we need a coordinated and sustained effort to raise awareness at all levels. Most people seem to find out more about NCDs in the hard way that is through personal experience and that of friends or relatives when it strike. The community needs to be made more aware and knowledgeable on all the various aspects associated with NCDs. Although the people in the community may be aware of NCDs with its debilitating consequences, both on the individual and the community, not enough is known by the community on early diagnosis, clinical consultation, prevention, treatment and management of the NCDs. In this way, a cost effective and sustainable community based interventions needs to be formulated and implemented with better success and greater involvement of the community members who will be aware of what exactly is at stake. There is also need for urgent affordable and effective curative measures to be made available within the community. Community participation is a process in which community people become involve in both delivery of and discussion about health and health services in order to provide the type of care most appropriate to their define needs and circumstances and also in the prevention of the disease.

The rise of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Africa requires a multi-sectoral action (MSA) in their prevention and control. This study aimed to generate evidence on the extent of MSA application in NCD prevention policy development in five sub-Saharan African countries (Kenya, South Africa, Cameroon, Nigeria and Malawi) focusing on policies around the major NCD risk factors. The broader study applied a multiple case study design to capture rich descriptions of policy contents, processes and actors as well as contextual factors related to the policies around the major NCD risk factors at single- and multi-country levels. Data were collected through document reviews and key informant interviews with decision-makers and implementers in various sectors. Further consultations were conducted with NCD experts on MSA application in NCD prevention policies in the region. For this paper, we report on how MSA was applied in the policy process. The findings revealed some degree of applicatio...

Background There is a dearth of studies assessing non-communicable disease (NCD) mortality within population-based settings in Uganda. We assessed mortality due to major NCDs among persons ≥ 30 years in Eastern Uganda from 2010 to 2016. Methods The study was carried out at the Iganga-Mayuge health and demographic surveillance site in the Iganga and Mayuge districts of Eastern Uganda. Information on cause of death was obtained through verbal autopsies using a structured questionnaire to conduct face-face interviews with carers or close relatives of the deceased. Physicians assigned likely cause of death using ICD-10 codes. Age-adjusted mortality rates were calculated using direct method, with the average population across the seven years of the study (2010 to 2016) as the standard. Age categories of 30–40, 41–50, 51–60, 61–70, and ≥ 71 years were used for standardization. Results A total of 1,210 deaths among persons ≥ 30 years old were reported from 2010 to 2016 (50.7% among women)....

In their editorial, Tangcharoensathien et al1 describe the challenges of industry market promotion and policy interference from Big Tobacco, Alcohol, and Food in addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs). They provide an overview of the increasing influence of corporate interest in emerging economies and government attempts to implement the World Health Organization (WHO) ‘best buy’ interventions. The authors largely draw on examples from Asia and a few selected countries, but provide little detail as to how aggressive marketing and policy interference plays out in a context of poor legislation and regulation in many low- and middleincome countries (LMICs), where the burden of NCDs is increasing at an alarming rate and governments face a high burden of disease with a limited budget for countering industry interference. This commentary provides some poignant examples of the influence of Big Tobacco, Alcohol, and Food on market regulation and policy interference in LMICs and argues ...